A Sealed Difference
by Evillevi
Summary: Rewrite. In hind sight this isn't good enough for my taste so after my finals it's back to the manuscript
1. Prologue

**Fixed the grammar and completed it**

**Disclaimer: i Don't own anything about naruto**

**The First Meeting**

_Humans are fundamentaly flawed. For every situation the same person may act differently regardless of the similarities that all those situation have in common. Faced with something they are uncomfortable with they would rationalize it with any form of reasoning even if it defies logic. This applies with things that they love. Things that they know. Especially things that they hate._

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><p>It was that time of year again . The crowds were enjoying the day. The money that changed hands was staggering as people bought toys, drinks, foods, clothes and the list goes on. Fireworks were littering the sky, painting the night sky with a myriad of colors on a star studded canvas. Children dancing and "eeping" with their delightful voice, in as they run about. Almost everyone were enjoying the holiday. It was a time to let loose, a time for all to enjoy their escape from a sure death 5 years to that day. Many a couple were proposing to<p>

However we are not focusing on them but rather we will pay our attention to a single 5 year old boy. With blonde hair that looked like it came from the sun he hid under the shadows of a tree. Dressed in what the villagers celebrating would call and I quote "garments", the boy was playing an elaborate game of hide and seek with extreme pain at stake. He could literally hear his heart beating. Shivering in the thin sheet of cloth that covered his body, one which looks like a toga for his top and shorts that seems to have died a few years back the boy considered his options.

Now everyone has what would amount to an eureka moment where the gears in the brain would switch from barely able to do anything to being a metaphorical sponge for knowledge. It is also the time where a person long-term memories would form. This has for some weird and totally unknown reason occurred at the age of 4 years and 9 months in this boy. A little bit late in hindsight. As a result he had little to no memories prior to that time. However he still could remember with perfect clarity weird smelling monsters that would sometimes hurt him. He saw in his mind eyes the smiles and hugs some of his fellow showed when they played with each other.

He recalled the weird flying things that were so sharp. But to him none of this mattered. For this one point in time he had to escape those weird monster. So he hid trying not to make a sound . Trying to look for them. If he did that then-

Pain all he felt was pain. He saw out of the corner of his eye a monster holding those weird flashes in the sky like a chain connecting him with his(the monster) hand. He could hear shouting and really loud and happy wanted to run away but his body just won't listen. He wanted to scream but his breath just came out in ragged gasps. For an eternity he felt the pain but in the end the blackness with it's comforting embrace came.

He woke up in the white room. It was a room that smelled funny. The boy looked out the window and saw the sun nearly setting and a flock of birds happily flying about. He felt weak and softly whistled a song. A song matching the language of the birds that flirted out of his window. He asked them to come so he could pet them. The birds responded by looking at him before flying through the window. When they landed on him the boy petted them and coax them to tell him something, anything. To an outsider they would only see a boy smiling while he petted the birds. To a villager they would be terrified of it as they saw their worst fear slowly breaking the boy's bonds. But the boy had no idea of this. To him it seemed that his entire world was filled with pain and isolation.

The white man who would leave without saying anything.

The old lady who would take care of the other children but would ignore him like he did not exist

The monsters that tried to hurt him for all two months of his life.

Here in this white room the boy had a rare moment of relaxation and reflection. He wondered not with words but with thoughts and feelings about his life. He felt a strange feeling that made him want to fall asleep(a/n he doesn't know about death yet),to just give up. He wondered what would it be like to smile by substituting the children in his memories with himself. He utterly ignored the strange feeling deep inside him that he should help those monsters, to let them hurt him. He wondered why did this happen to him and no one else. He wondered why he had to feel the pain. Then he felt tears running down his cheek at that thought. Raising his hands and touching those tears he wondered why he was doing that and so knowing that in this white room that he would be safe. For the first time in his life(all two months) did he chose to fall asleep. To fall into the deepest slumber that he possibly could.

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><p>She was wondering. Pondering. Speculating. She remembered about parts of her life. No more than two or three days worth but enough for her. She remembered about that men with the spiral eye. She remembered cursing him as he sealed 19th the power of the damned angel into her. She remembered losing her memories fragment by fragment. Piece by piece. She remembered the blood lust the cursed power had given. She remembered losing her personality slowly but surely while her body moved and killed on its own.

She wondered when she started regaining herself. She mused that it must have been when she was sealed in a human for the first time. At first she knew only darkness and anger. However that was tempered away as she somehow copied the memories of he hosts. Like the beginnings of a fire she slowly gained memories of her her first host until she knew everything about them. As she gained their memories she slowly remembered about her life. In hindsight she realized she gained more memories the second time around. A whole lot more. She wondered if she would gained back all her memories if she remained sealed for a long enough period of time.

Then she felt something foreign entered her domain. It felt strange but then she noticed that it was new. Something akin to excitement blossomed in her veins as she willed her domain to resemble a giant platform along with herself in what would be her true form at one point in time. As she was doing this she wondered why did this entity feel so sad.

The boy felt something. He knew he was sleeping but he felt curious . He felt like when he was reflecting but only a thousand time more intense. He sensed about some thing new something he was exited about. He then did something sort of like an echo something that was just the like he did it but it felt a tad bit odd like it was not meant for him. He thought about walking to this echo to see what it was.

She waited. In her young but regal body (16+ years old), she waited knowing that what ever it was it is curious. She knew it was coming to her so she waited. While she waited she wondered why did dhe feel pained.

He was thinking about the last monster with that weird sky flashes as he was walking towards that something. He stopped thinking when he saw a goddess.

She stopped thinking about the pain and filed it away for the future when she saw him ambling in that horrible state, her tails flicking with suppressed curiosity.

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><p><em>Memories are a way for us to learn from our past. Every action and decision we make is shaped by our past. A false memory is a knowledge at the level where it blends seamlessly with our memories. It resemble something equivalent to the gained knowledge from a documentary for example but at an extremely high rate of integration with our memory. False memories can be a result of a really good imagination or even hypnotism. And if there is no memory to contest such a false memory a person would based their actions on these false memories.<em>

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><p>She saw a boy who seemed to be in sadness. It was due to his clothes which resembled nothing more than pieces of clothes tied together by the barest of threads. It was not cause by how his face expressed his feelings as it was something along the lines of a blank emotionless mask. It was a result in how he was treated that cause his malnutrition what with his ribs exposed through the holes of his clothing or his general lack of growth. No it was how he walked that told her all she needed to know of his state of mind. How he walked or ambled slowly, so slowly. How his arms droop ever so slightly when he moved his body. In life many people could control what they show on their facial facade but few could truly hide such signs from their every actions, their every habit.<p>

The two of them then stared at each other. One who wasn't able to show any emotion while the other unable to hide any emotion. Neither knew of how long this stare off lasted

Then she realized that at the edge of her consciousness there was some thing. It was curiosity she decided. Although she wondered about the second feeling that seemed a lot awe. If you had asked her to describe that something she would have said it was white. Like a pure soul. Total innocence. But as she "looked" at it she realize one very odd thing. It never changed. It got stronger sure but in essence that something only got purer.

She wondered why. She wondered how. Then she wondered what it was so she tried to push her feeling of curiosity to it. Then she saw the boy's eye widen. To say why this was a significant fact one must realize that this was the first time she saw anything on the boy's face. Even from the moment he entered he carefully kept every sign of emotion of his face.

Then she received something. Like her memories she gained from her past hosts events that had happened sometime in the past started to flash in front of her eyes. There was something different though. It was more vivid she realized . All the pictures were crystal clear while even her old recovered memories weren't even half as precise. Unlike her absorbed memories she heard everything as though she was there where her absorbed memories consisted mostly of emotions.

She noted grimly that most of the memories were filled with pain. That the boy,her host she realized mostly felt fear in all her memories. Fear and curiosity. She focus all her concentration on a few of the memories and she realized that she was right, there was an extreme curiosity in between the bouts of fear. She felt sad, broken even. What was it like to never feel the love of a mother she mused internally. Even she had a few memories of when she was a kit.

Inexplicably she had a need, if you would to comfort him. The maternal instinct to comfort the child that she just could not absentmindedly realized that she must have been affected by some of her host more painful memories. She also came to a conclusion that her absorbed memories must have been affecting her as well sparking a slew of maternal instincts in her.

A being that must follow her emotion she stood up and walk towards the boy . she then lowered herself to this level. Taking note of his brilliant blue eyes and enjoying the almost gobsmacked expression when she then hugged him. With the barest of thought she then took some of her better memories filled with happiness and contentment, even if the events themselves were an unknown and gave it to him. The memory of a well told bedtime story by her mother while the rain was falling , the sure knowledge that there are people that would always be there for him, the satisfaction of being praised, memories a normal child should have. Even though these memories were nothing more than concepts, filled with emotions she knew that he would appreciate it. She felt more than see the comfort the boy took from those memories as his mind seemed to feel lighter. As his face visibly brightened she could sense an aura of belonging.

She continued hugging him as he immersed himself in the memories she gave him. The memories of a family. The memories of being loved. She knew that even though she was unable to perfectly copy the memories to give him it did not matter. All he needed was to feel comforted. To feel happy, loved and content. That is what he needed, the things others took for granted but he never had.

A feeling of wanting to be comforted,a desire to try to emulate his new found memories wafted over her breaking her musings. She then pulled back a bit and saw him holding back his tears. Despite that his lips were trembling and his eyes were watery. Still she saw the look of hope in the eyes of the originator of that strange feeling. She didn't know why he was doing that(crying) or why he still needed to be comforted but she knew she would get the answers eventually. So she thought of a bed and a simple fur lined bed, king sized materialize next to her. She carried the boy to the bed and comforted him to sleep with a melody she learned from her mother all those years ago.

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><p><strong>Looking for beta<strong>

**Pm me even if you want to bounce ideas of me **


	2. The choices we make

**Disclaimer everything besides the dead guy does not belong to me.**

Choices

Sarutobi Hiruzen was having a bad day.

He glared at his enemy.

Scratch that he was having a horrible day.

The old kage was seated behind a desk in an oval office filled with paperwork. He could literally hear the wooden desk groaning under the load of crap. He considered burning half the bloody piece hell that he swore was grinning at him. Seriously how many of this forms are mere dupli-,tripli- and quadruplicates. "I must have rejected this water purification proposal for the eight time today'' thought the aged man with frustration. He was tempted, sorely tempted to just go to the nearest training ground to unleash a bottle of overkill on some poor defenseless dummies. Looking out the window he sighed and got to thinking on how to handle his Naruto problem.

"_Well at least the civilians are smart enough to leave him alone_." Sarutobi pondered. "_Ironic that the civilians as a whole, clueless in the art of sealing are treating him better than some of the ninja factions_."

At first the kage was worried that the civilians would try something drastic against the Kyuubi container. However surprisingly the only thing they did to the poor boy was to ignore him. That and help him so he get out of their way as soon as possible. Unfortunate, but far more welcome to the rather overt attacks that some rather idiotic shinobis take part in on an annual basis. The worst part was the fact that the law to protect Naruto's status stops him from being able to try him in court as said law prevents him form doing anything that may allow the younger generation from knowing Naruto's burden.

Sarutobi wondered if it had anything to do with the civilians near obsessive need to forget about the Kyuubi attack and the death of their loved ones. Ignorance must really be bliss the old man thought

The third mentally sighed "_If only I could stop my own ninja from harassing the poor boy then his life would be far more bearable. Damn it I should have never told the council about the Kyuubi if the next thing they did was to spread the news as first as they possibly could._"

He mentally recounted the 60 or so assaults at Naruto that occurred within the past 7 and a **½** years. Cringing at the thought that he could be wrong, that he should have revealed Naruto's heritage rather that hide him in a shroud secrecy. After all what good would it do to save him from the enemies on the outside of the village walls if he should die by the hands of those he would protect.

All of these attempts occurred during the weeks before and after the Kyuubi festival. With tension running high from the original attack 7 years back it is only natural that things get chaotic when ninjas are reminded of their lost. To top it all off the culprits for each and every attempt at Naruto's life were drunk, angry and with reduce inhibitions willing to use excessive force to hurt their jinchuriki.

The third mentally winced when he remembered Naruto's attempt of destroying most of the sake crates by literally setting fire to it a few months back. He did not blame him since although it is considered felony to destroy merchandise(A/n it is a ninja village) somehow Sarutobi was able to hush it all up just in case. Although in the end there was no evidence linking the fire to Naruto , judging by his rather happy attitude during the festival as there was no drunken shinobi to harass him despite having never announced the news yet. Sarutobi was quite sure that Naruto must have something to do with it.

"Well at least Naruto has some hope of becoming a ninja " thought Sarutobi as he pondered on the Naruto's skills, or subsequent lack of it. Naruto should have joined the academy 2 years early under the recommendation of the Hokage at the age of seven. That said he felt guilty that he never checked on Naruto.

(^'.'^)(^',')(','^)(v'.'v)

_**Flashback 6 months ago.**_

"The last thing on today's agenda is to decide whether Naruto should attend the academy early" announced Sarutobi before taking a seat, letting loose a big sigh and letting the other members of the council duke it out on the field of politics. All 12 of the members of the ninja council were currently sitting around him. _If it only Naruto was a ninja then I won't have to sit through this shit _Sarutobi mentally sighed. In Konoha there are three councils with the Hokage at the helm of two of them. The first council was the civilian council that was involved with anything that does not include ninjas' affairs. The second council was the ninja council that discuss anything that concerns a ninja outside their missions. The third council and the only one without Sarutobi at the helm is the hidden council. Their only duty is too keep all the members of the two council along with Sarutobi from doing anything illegal. Staffed with ninjas who are loyal to the daimyo and as their duty implies their members are not disclose to reveal their position to anyone along with holding the sword of Damocles over the heads of those they are suppose keep in line, threatening them with any secret information they may or may not have.

As they debated Sarutobi looked at each member of the shinobi council. First there was Hiashi, the normally stoic Hyuga. Dress in somber black robes, simple but elegant he has been rather upset after his wife death. Upset being an understatement a serious understatement. With his wife death he started becoming more protective of his two daughters. Ironic that he, a real prude for rules before the accident outright ignoring them in order to do whats best for his daughters. Money, training, his spare time anything they wanted he would give it to them on a sliver platter. On top of that the best Jyuken user in Konoha regularly sinks into depression during the various anniversary he celebrated with his wife. A more loving couple that some would say to be the best of Happily Ever After. He was pulled out of active duty out of worries that he would be suicidal with his wife death.

Then there was Shikaku. A Nara who possess an almost unrivaled intelligence, he looks at both sides of the coin before making his decision. With his two scars on the right side of his face, a testament of his career in the Third Ninja War. However most people who had the misfortune of facing him when he was serious would have come to the unneeded conclusion that he was the perfect ninja as he shows absolutely no emotion when push comes to shove. Otherwise he was too lazy too do anything. His son, while inheriting his lazy as a sloth attitude is poised to be an equal in terms of pure brainpower in a decade or so. Already there were Anbu reports on his desk of how Shikamaru mastered his clan techniques, or the ones taught to him at least within a matter of hours. Despite that Shikaku was almost apathetic and rarely showed emotions to just about everyone. Only his wife and to some degree his son along with his teammates are the only one to succeed in bringing out his heart.

Opposite Shikaku was Tsume Inuzuka. She was a ferocious kunoichi who wore her heart on her sleeves. While being a clan head for a rather small clan after having nearly been wipe out by the Kyuubi attack, the current skills of the remaining Inuzuka in service was damnably good. On top of that she was currently celebrating the fact that her two children were prodigies in the making. Hana her oldest child is a kunoichi whose skills in animals based medicine rivals that of the Slug Sannin. A Tsunade in the making, there are hopes that she would start to turn her attention to standard medical ninjutsu. Then there was Kiba, Hana's younger brother who absorbed the clan's technique like a sponge. Already he and his canine partner have mastered the art of canine speech and are working on how to improve their already vast array of hand signs, body language and scent signs.

On his left was Danzo. The old war hawk was obsessed with doing everything that he possibly could in order to make Konoha the best Hidden Village in the Elemental Countries. While the two of them regularly butted heads on how best to accomplish this, both of them are aware that they share the same intention. Despite his age The Third had a suspicion on how strong his old teammate really is. Recently his private Anbu division, ROOT had to be disbanded despite their impressive record. This was partially due to some of them going crazy from the rigorous training so insane even to veteran ninjas. But to ensure that something good came out of it The Third decided that a new Anbu division could be formed if Danzo found a way to correct the flaw in his ROOT squad.

On his left there was Uchiha Fugaku, Head of Konoha's Police force. Dressed in a suit he has a wide knowledge of virtually all the laws in Konoha considering he propose and bills the majority of them. Father of two children, the prodigy Itachi and Satsuki the next self-proclaimed female Hokage, he has a no nonsense attitude in almost all aspect of his life. The most disturbing was that unlike Shikaku, Fugaku was far more apathetic. He had a stand on everything and anything under the sun and is also very opinionated. Think of Molly Weasley in the yet unknown to them Harry Potter series.

These five are the most vocal on the council and will make their views known at the very least. More often than not the five of them would try everything up to bribing to get what they want. While their interests are not necessaryly mutually exclusive, at best there would only be two sides on every issue. This particular fact has led him to go on drinking binges against his doctor's order every now and again.

Shaking his mental head he starts to pay attention to the debate in front of him.

"I say that we should bar him from entering the academy at all" said Inoichi quietly. The third was jerked from his calm, happy place. While unexpected it was not surprising. Taking a deep breath Sarutobi started to respond before Tsume beat him to the point.

"And why the hell not. It is him that contains the Kyuubi. It is him that lives in a perpetual hell. Almost no one sell food to him. Fuck it they avoid him like the goddamn plague. Hell he was attack by our own shinobi, he is in more danger from our own self then w, they may have been drunk but still. What right do we have to bar him from entering the academy." snarled the Inuzuka alpha.

" _Well loyalty is a very well known(cough understatement cough) characteristics of the Inuzuka clan_. " thought the old Hokage.

Sighing, the Hokage thanked Kami and was glad that Danzo had no interest in Naruto. Looking at said nin, to his veritable knowledge of the old war hawk mannerisms he had absolutely no interest in the current topic. While to everyone else present the bandaged mummy acted just like normal, years of experience of dealing with Danzo told the Third that he was bored out of his mind. With the already small, minute tells the famed shinobi was unaware of virtually ceasing to exist, Sarutobi could safely say that Danzo was in his happy place. Chuckling at the thought the kage once again focus his attention to the debate at hand.

" That may be the case but the fact remains that Naruto is a flight risk. He may be civil now but there is absolutely nothing that ties him down to Konoha" Continued the mind reader.

Shikaku sighed " Troublesome. Naruto is a jinchuriki. He will still need to control his power anyway. Consider this. Which is more troublesome. A Naruto with no control and no outlet or a Naruto with some control and the rest of the world to vent his frustration on."

" Inoichi, I agree with the Tsume. We do owe Naruto our lives and we should at least try to pay him back" piped in the fa..., uhnm uhnm, big boned, much better, Akimichi. Chouza is one of the few minor clan head that is actually allowed to attend these meetings. This is largely attributed to his sheer mastery of his clan's muscle manipulating jutsu.

"...",Danzo is still in his happy place. Sarutobi internally swore that Danzo smiled, more like his lips twitched, away as he ignored the ramblings of the council.

" While a jinchuriki is definitely an asset it should be said that they are useless for Konoha. It is redundant for us to train a weapon that we won't use and that will likely back fire on us" Hiashi finally says.

Fugaku closed his eyes and placed his hands under his chins " Remember the power of Konoha is based on our ability to counter any other jinchuriki. With the Mokuton bloodline in Orochimaru's last victim and the sharingan hypnosis that would even affect a bijuu, we can take on any of the other major hidden villages without problem. Even containing Naruto isn't a problem if he goes out of control. The question that we have to ask is "Is it worth it to teach a shinobi that would more than likely betray the village if we gave him the means to do so?"" remarked the stoic clan head.

At this no one said a word. Even the outside drizzle which no one noticed sounded like a downpour. In the ninja world one of the worst thing you could do was to betray your village. After all what kind of person would willingly turn their backs on their family or friends. The problem they all realize was that Naruto had none. Even the most optimistic of the entire shinobi council can only say with the utmost confidence that the only thing that Naruto has are friends. That statement too would be stretching the definition of the word by a large margin. True he may have been polite when he talks to certain people, but in the end it is nothing more than pure politeness. Pure twisted messed up politeness.

Sighing, he seemed to be doing a lot of that lately , Sarutobi said startling everyone else " Well then let's put it to a vote in half an hour on which of the three actions the academy can take in regards to Naruto Uzumaki as a student."

_An hour later_

Sarutobi was walking down the streets as he looked at the results of the votes. Of close to a dozen clans and a dozen more valued shinobi in different departments the decision stood at allowing Naruto to attend the academy. As he walked down the road to Naruto's house he smiled at the few villagers that were up and about at this time of night **(a/n 10pm). **He already dismiss his Anbu guards for the day and was rather glad that he did so.

" _Sigh. I hope Naruto will like this present" _thought Hiruzen as he considered on how he should go about telling the young boy about his early participation of becoming a "super cool" ninja as Konohamaru put it. The old man smiled contently as he remembered on how his grandson was always trying to beat him in order to become Hokage.

"_This should be it" _thought Sarutobi as he stopped in front of a small house. _"Well the Anbu report was detailed" _mused the old man. _"Considering everything I must say it is a wonder what Naruto must have done in order to get the deed to this house." _

The word "house" can be more accurately used to described almost everything other than this particular abode. It simply does not do it justice. First of this "house" is only three story high. Second it was almost 50 by 50 meters long. Constructed of stone rather than wood or plaster that was normally used in buildings nowadays it was rather grand and awe inspiring. The stone was seemingly smooth from the front gate but has a rough feel if you actually touch it. The doors and windows are made out of brass and high strength glass. There were multiple chimneys rather than a box shape the house seemed to be made in a rough triangular shape.

The gardens at the front of the house was filled with a variety of seasonal flowers haphazardly scattered in all round the house. From his position in front of the gates Sarutobi could even see the farm located at the back of the house. Having the Great Forest as a backdrop serves to further underline how imposing the structure is. However that effect was dimmed since only the lights on the first floor was actually turned on. No surprise since almost the entire compound was left empty in order to test new experimental explosives. There were also a lot of young trees in the compound ranging from fruit trees to the giant species that can be found in the forest of death or the great forest.

The house or more appropriately manor/ mansion was placed as closed as possible to the great forest and as far away from the village proper as a person possibly could while still being in the land of Konohagakure. The deed to the land was roughly 100 meters in a radius from the house proper. The entire land was ringed with a wrought iron fence and multiple gates in this fence.

" _Why oh why did Revun had to give Naruto his house of all things." _thought the Hokage rubbing his nose in frustration.

For a brief history lesson for my fic Revun is a talented prodigy in the art of making anything go boom. He is also an OC who is dead and will have little impact on the plot besides being an example of someone who may have help Naruto in my fic. An orphan with no known family members he never got married. At any rate while he was never made into the ninja program .While his research had very little implications in a proper ninja battle, the application in the demolition of any structure or even in ambushes is priceless. He did a lot of research in explosions. And I mean a lot. So much so that he was forced to buy a property next to a forest filled with giants animals in order to continue his research. Far far away from innocent civilians and nervous ninjas. The entire mansion was made in order to bear the damage that will come as a result of his research. The entire mansion was made using an extremely large fund dedicated to improving the research and development of explosive. However a few years into the Third Ninja War almost every scientist and researcher in this R&D program was placed in other sectors simply because they were useless in comparison to Revun. The flaw with this was that when the ninja council wanted to continue the R&D there was no one who had the know how to do it since 90% of the entire R&D process was done single handedly by one person. So "The Lab" as it was called and the surrounding lands was given to Revun. Before he die some 2 odd years ago he decided to pass it down to Naruto in his will for an unknown reason. Now enough of the boring history lesson lets continue to the story.

So taking a deep breath, Sarutobi schooled his face to his grandfatherly persona and he started to knock on the door.

(^'.'^)(^',')(','^)(v'.'v)

Naruto was having a rather normal day. Clad in a simple white cloth t-shirt and a pair of black baggy pants he was lying on the nice velvety floor of his study, _he had to say it more it sounded so cool_ after having a nice dinner consisting of tempura and ice chilled apple juice. He is currently occupied in his own thoughts despite the pile of English based instruction books around him.(A/N For this fic I intend for the story to use English for the setting of the story since I can't understand Japanese to save my own life). There were the "How to" series, dictionaries by the pile literally and almost every known copy of English text books that could be found in Konoha. The stacks was literally as tall as Naruto all piled up by category. He even had a pile on top of the desk. But still our protagonist was currently drooling on top of the floor in front of a dictionary, basking in the afterglow of a full stomach .

"_Buying the cooking oil and utensils from Teuchi was definitely worth it" _thought a contented Naruto. _"The mango trees should be ripening soon maybe I should harvest it so that I could..."_

" Make a pudding with it. Like a great big feast " interjected Nyx, purring while she did so.

" _Come on aren't you sick of sweets. I mean seriously how could you like sugar like this. The last time I did do it for you , I was sick for two days. _"

" But seriously I help you tweak your ramen recipe " Nyx whined.

Naruto could almost see her pouting faced even without going into his mid scape " _but this and that are totally different things and didn't I help make my mind scape better for you after that_ "

Before their squabble, pathetic as it is descended to nothing more than a shouting match they heard somebody knocking on the door. Now something like this a knocking sound on the door or someone ringing a bell automatically equates to "someone wants to enter" in the mind of a normal person. However in the mind of a socially deprived( no one visited him before )7 year old boy or a pubescent kitsune whose memory has gone bye bye their thoughts were something a kin to shock and like some people who were surprise their bodies, physical for the male and mental for the female jerked. This ended with Naruto's body toppling the stacks of books and causing a huge ruckus,

(^'.'^)(^',')(','^)(v'.'v)

The moment after he knocked , Sarutobi felt more than heard the booms that thundered through the night. Wasting no time on thoughts he quickly used an earth jutsu to shift through the rock wall. He then sprinted to the are of the sound with the beginnings of his fear that something bad had happened.

" W_here is he? Did something happened. I should have gotten the Anbu to look out for him,..._" these thoughts and many others besides went through the Third's head the moment as his brain restarted.

In about five second from start to finish he moved from the front door to Naruto's study room. He then stopped running and stared. He was still moving but he just didn't care. After a slow-mo moment, this was followed by a him crashing into the wall as the law of physics reasserted itself in the Naruto-verse.

What Sarutobi saw was in essence a room filled virtually to the brim with books save for a meter or so around the door the entire room was filled with a small hill of books. " _What the #%&. how did all of this get in here_ ". Picture a large dining room filled literally to the brim with books. And I mean to the literal brim at one end with books. Out of this pile of paper was the struggling arms of one Naruto Uzumaki.

Feeling a bit put off by the false alarm of what he assumed to be the sound of a lot of falling books, Sarutobi decided to help Naruto out of the mess he was in. Firmly grasping an arm by the wrist and shoving the rest of the books away using the other arm it took the Third a minute to retrieve a bruised Uzumaki from his predicament.

" Well that was a problem you had there my boy" said the old man.

Naruto who was still being pulled up suddenly tensed when he realize that somebody was helping him, not knowing if the man was friend or foe. And who would blame him since this is the first time anyone has ever visited him. This did not go unnoticed by Sarutobi too and it reaffirmed what Fugaku said _ "__Is it worth it to teach a shinobi that would more than likely betray the village if we gave him the means to do so__?""_

"Who are you?" asked a cautious Naruto paying heed to the whispered warnings of Nyx.

The old man furrowed his brows, seemingly thinking up his response while still maintaining his grip on Naruto's arm.

" I am.. was Revun's patron." said the Third as he let go Naruto's arm.

With a flourish he bowed and said " I am the Third Hokage of Konohagakure, Sarutobi Hiruzen"

" errrrr..." mumbled a startled Naruto who mentally questioned himself on what he should do to his ' guest '.

With a quirked eyebrow Hiruzen continued " Now how about you showed me your living room so I can rest this old bones of mine."

Pulling himself out of his trance Naruto led the Third into his living room. He quickly went and prepared some tea for his guest and while internally questioning the motive of the Third. Nyx too agreed with him that something was up.

After serving the tea Naruto sat on the opposite of Hiruzen.

" So why is the Hokage wanting to visit l'tte old me?" questioned a still suspicious Naruto.

As he had prepared it on his trip there the Third said.

" Do you know Naruto-san about the main profession of the village?"

Naruto only nodded

"Well as you know due to the Kyuubi attack a few years back we had a depleted roster of able shinobis . As such we have expanded the criteria of those eligible to join the ranks" Said the Third, his rehearsed lie flowing smoothly from his lips.

Realization dawned on Naruto as he said without a single speck of emotion on his face " You want me to be a ninja don't you."

" Yes or to be more precise we , as in the ninja council are willing to offer you and a few others a chance to join the academy when the new intake starts. In truth it is quite the honor since only sponsored civilians were allowed to join the shinobi ranks before this."

Naruto sat there as he mentally consider the offer.

" So what do you think, on one hand we can learn quite a few thinks about jutsu's. On the other hand there is no guarantee that there isn't a trap within the offer as well"  said a suddenly serious Nyx. But than it was also a necessity considering the kind of drastic changes to their lives even if they were still academy students. Contary to popular opinion Naruto did think about joining Konoha's military force but he had come to the conclusion that it was not worth it. Deciding to buy time he decided to take the initiative in the conversation.

" Before I think about it why choose me?"

Another expected question and like rehearsed the answer came forth

"Most civilians aren't willing to put their children through the program and it is important ultimately for us to gain new shinobis. The majority of the current ninjas on active duty are orphans. No parents equals more freedom and ultimately more ". Sarutobi hoped that with this he could divert Naruto from...

" True but you still didn't answer my question." Sarutobi cursed the gods before he pulled himself to his full height in order to look Naruto in the eyes, not letting any sign of his emotion out and said " You caught Revun's eye he was and still is considered a genius and that in and of itself is a sign that you have a lot of potential." He hoped that He would not reveal to Naruto about his jinchuriki status.

"  He is lying kit, he knows about us"  said a panicked kitsune.

Not knowing what to do the boy decided to learn more about the man's offer.

" So what does it mean. Are you offering me a scholarship or a free pass to use the academy grounds or free jutsus? " the last couple of words was uttered with a _little bit _ of hope

Shaking his head the Third continued. "No I am only saying that we will not reject any application from you and would even speed it up if need be"

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><p>In Naruto's head his chibi self just poofed into existence and was having a debate with Nyx. Their conversation went along the line of this.<p>

" So what do you think"

"Don't take the offer in my opinion, the fart bag seems to take for granted the fact that you want to be a ninja."

" Well it isn't like I got anything better to do"

" True but being a ninja means you need to swear loyalty to the village. Can you honestly do that without sacrificing your happiness. Even if you have no qualms about joining remember you still can be an academy student for years longer that necessary. Plus he seems to be desperate to convince you to join. Even I find it suspicious that someone of his station would actually meet you in person in order to try to convince you to join."

" If that is the case best if I just say no" thought Naruto as he internally sighed.

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><p>Breaking out of his musing he told the Hokage " I don't wa..."<p>

Surprised by what Naruto intended to say, a trick honed after years of reading people, Sarutobi interrupted Naruto before he could finish his sentence.

" That is alright my boy. But I am still going to enroll you to the academy. Even if you want to quit all I'm asking is for you to try it out for a few weeks." Inwardly Sarutobi mentally noted down that he had to get Inoichi to determine what course the academy instructors have to take in order to keep Naruto in the academy.

"Even if you say that I would not go at all. After all why do I even want to go. Even with the power I may get I would never achieve anything with it."

Hiruzen was surprised with Naruto's remarkably adult like answer. That response was the same one most potential ninjas used when they, the council asked them why won't they join the military force. Knowing that he would need draw another another plan just to get Naruto into the academy in the first place he decided to leave Naruto alone for now. He briefly considered of using Naruto's heritage as a carrot to dangle in front of the boy. However knowing that such knowledge should be kept for a better time.

" At any rate the offer is still open whether you decide to attend or not."

Looking up at the clock he resumed

" so I want to bid you good night as I need to go finish the rest of my work."

" Let me show you the front door then" responded Naruto

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><p>Once the Hokage left Naruto went straight to bed. Even with Nyx asleep Naruto remembered what the village meant to him (and not in a good way). And as he looked at the starry sky from his room he prepared himself to say goodbye for he knew deep in his heart that while he was here he will always be surrounded by those who seek to take advantage of him.<p>

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><p>"You would be so disappointed in him Minato"<p>

Sarutobi was in front of the Fourth's tomb. Despite being married there was officially no record of said union. In order from preventing anyone from finding out about Kushina her bones were cremated and scattered in the winds. With the help of Jiraya and Minato's back up plan , any information linking the two together was forever erased.

"To think that your son doesn't want to be a shinobi. i feel disappointed that I did not do anything to correct this habit sooner. Even if he will grow up to be a wholesome human being what good will Konoha's trump card be if he would not go to the same lengths as you or me to protect Konoha "

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><p><em><strong>Looking for beta and Please review if you want my fics to improve<strong>_

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**_Going to hint at naruto's type of jutsu in next chapter_**


	3. preview Unbetaed

Disclaimer: I own nothing save for Nyx

**Different steps of a ladder**

A/N I'm putting all new author's note at the beginning of the stories since I'm still sure most of you aren't reading it when it is at the bottom so for now enjoy it. Since my mock is starting soon I'm putting up this little teaser for you as a sort of preview. However whether I complete this chapter or skip to just combining it into the third chapter is undecided yet. So sorry it's so short.

A/n Now I left some clues in the story that may have discrepancies at first glance but are made on purpose so assume that any mistake you find in the plot as part of my overall cookies for you the readers. Some will be disguised or even carefully worded (hint magic) though it will make more sense with any information from the newer chapters.

A/nI am considering on making more chapters or excerpts to highlight on the situation in Konoha for the rookie 12 as the story progresses so that I can show you the general development of some of the characters that I change into OOC. Not decided yet but review or PM me if you think that I should or shouldn't do it.

A/n Kudos for **ncpfan** for helping me develop some of my plot ideas after his review and subsequent conversation. Reviewing or pming me will allow me to change, improve and maybe even incorporate your ideas or wishes into my plot.

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" You know I always wondered why mages seemed to have so much difficulty with elemental manipulation. Your shinobi on the other hand only needs to fling their elemental jutsu with impunity at levels that would make any magi jealous. Though it isn't as potent" Nyx and Naruto were at a deserted field in the middle of nowhere. Nowhere being a place achievable through Nyx teleportation trick. A form of reverse summons with Nyx as the boss had allowed Naruto to access her homeland. This was achievable as Nyx is the only kitsune alive and being in default the boss of all kitsune (herself), gaining the power of making a summoning contract in the form of a small pocket size book, who says that animals can't keep up with the time. With privacy and tranquility insured Naruto can practice his magic without risking discovery. That saiad the summoning contract was basically useless as Nyx whose had no body couldn't be summoned and with no other kitsune to summon...

Naruto was currently being taught basic magic training in order to appease Nyx somewhat I-know -better-than-you methods.

" Well since we can't do the easy way, this is the only thing we can do so please tell me if I am missing the point in your rambling." having said that Naruto once again drew forth some power from nature in order to continue playing with water.

He was currently learning to use magic to make shapes and small sculptures with water to fine tune his control. Suffice to say he was failing admirably.

"Well, there seems to be some sort of shortcut for chakra users to quickly use their jutsu. Magic users on the other hand have to either understand the science of what their trying to do or manually manipulate magic to achieve what they want. It is interesting to note that quantity seems to be the reason why mages are extinct today." Nyx was despite never learning anything more than the basics in spells of any sort is still a prodigy of the highest caliber.

Irritated at his lack of success for the last 5 hours since lunch time, Naruto couldn't help but say

"Well if it makes you feel better we wouldn't be doing this if I could still use chakra"

Years of repeating this line had taken the edges off Nyx conscience so she settled with inducing a headache in Naruto's admittedly thick head. The corrupted energy of the fallen angel had been a problem for Naruto. Besides casting havoc with his chakra coils, his body could not developed properly as his chakra which normally sustains his body became almost unusable. He couldn't even summon his chakra without damaging the fourth's seal aloong with his own health.

"At least you have me to teach you a little bit of magic. Though I will leave you to make your own elemental spells I am still a kitsune and deception is the key to my skills."

"So when are you going to teach me those cool Genjutsu."

Sighing the kitsune told Naruto " What did I say the last time you asked me that, ohh I don't know say two days ago. "

"I need to learn how people tick first before I can use my illusions to trick them since it is illusions and not genjutsu. Man I hate that"

Naruto having given up his last exercise had decided to warp back to his house. Pulling in magic he focus on the book and perform something only the toads and the Fourth has ever once again thanking whatever deity that made the old man give him that isolated house where his daily disappearance would likely avoid detection. Going into the kitchen he quickly made a few ham sandwiches and a jug of lemonade.

" Now we are going to go through the list of possible elemental summons and I need you to give me a reason for choosing any combination of them." Nyx had largely out of guilt and also out of pity tried to make up the damage she inadvertently caused to Naruto by teaching him magic among other things since Naruto and most of his children would never be able to use chakra again. This serves as a blessing in disguise as chakra which naturaly rejects and dilutes magic is never going to interfere with Naruto's casting since only the use of chakra or life force will affect one's magic or that was what Nyx said in order to try to feel better. That said even with his higher than average physique, a magic powered body which can only be achieved through extreme meditation to lock up one's chakra will never compare with chakra users.

" Before I start I was wondering can I make you an elemental familiar. Since you don't have a body if I use your teachings as a catalyst I could call you for a short while outside the seal." This was said in a single breath and as quickly as possible by Naruto.

For a short while the only response he got was silence as Nyx contemplated on his words.

" You know that doesn't sound like a bad idea. Although my powers would be limited to only illusions as I never got the time to develop in other areas (Not like that you perverts). Still why not go ahead and try to find a way to get me out of this seal." Grinning Nyx remembered her mothers favorite and most important lesson. " you know I could teach you how to make a homunculus and you can summon me into that so I would never need to come back into the seal again."

"A homuncu what now." You don't even need me to tell you who this is.

" A fake body. Normally this body will be inferior to a real one, so no matter how bad ass you are you can never create a perfect body." Naruto felt his spirit drop with that remark, a blight when compared with his usual behavior. Nyx sensing this quickly said "But we elementals have a neat trick concerning anything related to a physical body. Let me try to recover some of my memories first before I tell you more. So anyway please tell answer my question since we don't have all day." The last sentence flew out of her mouth with an exasperated huffed. After all wouldn't you be in the same position if you had to teach an 8th year old child something for five hours straight.

With a 6th sense on how not to make a woman angry or annoyed Naruto quickly took the hint and continued on with his lesson" At any rate there are wind summons which..."

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><p>AN no peeking. Wait until it becomes relevant in the later chapters first. I'm so mean aren't I

Muahahahahahahah (want to make it longer but who cares.)

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><p>" So what do you think about Naruto. Ehh Ibiki"<p>

The Hokage was having a consultation with his head of Interrogation. They were discussing a problem rarely faced in this military village.

" Psst. What is there to say the boy sure loves to put people down. It's been one month since the start of the school year and none of the academy instructors could do anything to Naruto. Since he never even step foot into the academy it makes sense that he is according to the laws still a civilian. And he rubs it in the face of any one who tries to get him into the Academy."

" You know what I mean Ibiki. What is the most likely way we can use to get Naruto into the academy before the school ends this year. Even I'm not daft enough to ignore the fact that every year Naruto escapes the academy would only reinforce his stance on attending the thing."

One month into the school year and Naruto had never step foot into the compound. Even when some of the instructors went out to find him all they could do was to be verbally beaten by an eight year old. Sarutobi just took another puff from his pipe.

" With all respect sir I'm starting to question the benefits and wisdom of your decision."

" Please continue."

" Naruto-san seems to show signs of being physically weaker than a shinobi along with having no chakra accessible." Grimacing at the inquiring look from The Professor face Ibiki continued. " Naruto touched some chakra conducive metal yet even I, an expert sensor was not able to detect any chakra emission. Even if we got him into the academy the question would be what would he be able ot do without any chakra if I am right and Naruto has a sub par physical stats compared to an average ninja's child."

" True. You make a valid point but I know of Naruto's handicap. A side effect of the seal was Jiraya's diagnosis. Although I have to say that what plans we have for Naruto would be top secret."

Knowing what the Sandaima was hinting at, Ibiki wisely shut up.

" So what would it take for us to get Naruto into the academy then Ibiki."

" A reason outside of power or self-arrogance." Getting a nod from the Third he continued. " Naruto seems to have a aversion of power and responsibility. Any thing that keeps him tied up with work and duties he naturally tends to avoid. He also has no need to prove himself so we can't take advantage of that. The only way I could think of would be to either bribe him or force him into a situation where he has to accept the offer."

With a wave of his hand the Hokage dismissed Ibiki as a blond man step out from the shadows.

" Well" said Inoichi "he came to a similar conclusion like me I guess."

The Hokage inhaled a large lungful of smoke as Inoichi sat down in a chair.

" I want your daughter to try to befriend our jinchuriki while you and Fugaku will work together to find a way to get Naruto into the academy as soon as possible."

Inoichi merely got up and as he was walking towards the door said.

" Hokage-sama I need to know, would you prefer Ibiki's plan or mine."

Drawing a deep breath from his pipe the Third said" The one where he becomes loyal to the village."

" I see. And my daughter, a spy I presume."

Inoichi left, already knowing the answer.

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><p>"This is it my Lord" the Hyuga Anbu placed within Konoha's Black ops delivered a message to the current Hyuga Head.<p>

" So it seems that he would seem to sacrifice one to save the many. Pathetic" Hiashi said this while crumbling the last minutes to the private meeting between the Hokage, Inoichi and Danzo. He thanked whatever gods that watches over the clan that the only Anbu privy to the meeting was a Hyuga with a conscience. Though it took days for him to safely deliver it he knew that the wait was worth it.

Within that letter was the plans to subvert the jinchuriki into a shinobi that was obsessed over the village hidden in the leaves. One of their projects was to place the boy into a team filled with hopeless genins. Hoping that the narutally small life span of theses small fry would cause some sort of survivor's guilt within the poor boy.

" _What has this village become." _He looked out of the window as he remembered his childhood days that were filled with innocence. _"To breed savages capable of doing this."_

With a subdued word he dismissed the Anbu. While he pondered on the 'demon child'. The clan was nothing more than one big extended family and even with the caged bird seal it is unheard of for someone to actually use it. Even the seal was deactivated upon entering active ninja service, though the dead man trigger wasn't disabled. Is it truly so hard to see that the greatest law of the clan was family first, village second.

"_Naruto"_ Hiashi pondered on what they wanted to do _" Why must fate be a bitch about you. On one hand with have the village elders who would like nothing more than make you a shinobi loyal to the village to the point of insanity. Than there are those who frequently forgets the fact that you are one. Never let it be said that we Hyuga's are blind to the intricacies of politics."_

He looked at the picture of his wife, Hitomi along with his two daughters and himself. The picture showed a bluennete holding a baby in her arms with her husband and older daughter at her side. The only picture with all the members of his family in one photo.

Hiashi smiled as he remembered how much Hitomi hated child abuse and had strived to help Naruto wherever she could . It was for that reason alone that he continued to support the child from the sidelines. True his hands were tied before he could do anything serious but it still does not make him hopeless.

Chuckling to himself he went over some of his plans for his eldest daughter's birthday party, knowing that for now there was nothing he could do sighing as his failure in getting Naruto away from the influence of the shinobi council his mood dropping slightly .

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><p>Kiba was having the time of his life. Dropping and weaving past his sister's nindogs he feinted with a punch and while Hana was distracted his own partner, Akamaru landed a Passing Fang on her. Despite the handicap given to him by Hana, where she would withhold from using any Jutsu, he still was very good for an academy student.<p>

Tsume and her cousin Rotu was having a cup of tea while watching Tsume's two children spar against each other. While the two of them were identical in personality and interest. Rotu had long blond and most of all wavy hair. Both of them had nearly the exact same style of fighting. Though being the daughter of a yamanaka as well as a inuzuka meant that Rotu has a larger repository of techniques.

" My my Kiba sure has grown a lot." Rotu was carefully observing Kiba's spar as part of a favor for Tsume. Even though Kiba is considered a prodigy any jutsu he used is still weaker due to his age. Tsume knowing this has come to the conclusion that the only thing Kiba could improve on in the meantime would be his skill in making strategies.

"If we had to train Kiba in strategy how would you go about it Rotu." Rotu winced as one of Hana's hay makers landed solidly onto Kiba's sternum. Subsequently she answered after a few moments of thinking.

"Kiba seems to be the more up close and personal type. If I have a choice I say the only form of thinking skills you could train him with would be tactics and not strategy." She paused for a moment for emphasis before elaborating.

" Kiba despite his skills does not seem to be able to think ahead. Consider tactics and strategy like how many moves you plan ahead in Go. If Kiba can plan 5 steps ahead than we can plan 70 steps ahead and a genius like Shikaku could plan 200 steps ahead. That is considering Kiba's personality a best estimate. Though as a bonus he can plan all 5 moves in only a moment's notice with the right training. So my advice would be to cancel any new attempts at mastering jutsus and work on that skill while he is still young."

Tsume only considers this silently while looking at her youngest child, one she hoped to be a future Hokage.

(^'.'^)

" _So then what about the plans for the clan's purification"_

"_It is proceeding quite smoothly, we will be able to complete it in a few years"_

"_You better hope it doesn't fail, Shisui"_

_"Of course not."_

(^'.'^)


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